THE “TONING” MYTH

THE “TONING” MYTH

It’s actually one of the biggest misconceptions in the fitness industry. Time and time again, the fitness enthusiast will tell their coach, “I just wanna tone, I don’t wanna get bulky.”

But do they really know what they’re asking for? Have they clarity for what they really want? Or are they simply just confused about how to actually reach their goals?

It’s most likely confusion.

But it’s not their fault, and it doesn’t have to be that way!

The problem is that “toning” has no exact meaning and thus results cannot be measured or obtained. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a toning exercise.

When you really listen to those people who are “toning” and what it is they are trying to accomplish, most of them say they want their muscles harder, they want to look like they workout, or they want to feel more comfortable in their own skin.

But those things aren’t the problem. The problem lies within the goal setting process. Because if you don’t know exactly what you are aiming to achieve, you will never achieve it.

To “TONE” you’ll have to build muscle, and to build muscle you’ll have to lift weights. When you lift weights you’ll need to recover, and to recover you’re going to need to dial in your nutrition. 🙂

Here are some different things that people may actually mean when they mistake their fitness goals for “toning”:

Goal:Example:

Increase strengthPower-Lifting / Weightlifting

Increase muscle massBodybuilding

Increase enduranceAerobic “Conditioning”

Increase speedSprinting & Plyometrics

Increase flexibilityYoga & Mobility

Decrease body-fatAerobic “Exercise” & Nutrition

Increase coordinationGymnastics & Weightlifting

If you can’t measure what it is you are aiming to achieve, then you will never achieve it! You can see that all these goals are very different and your training regimen will be very different depending on how you define “toning”.

So if “toning” is your goal, then you’ll need to lift some moderately – heavy weights, do some aerobic exercise, and make sure you do five sets of eating less junk.